Legal Issues You Need To Get Sorted When Start a Business

Every business needs legal guidance. Making sure that your business has legal protection is an essential part of running a successful business. And due to the complexities of the commercial law, regular law firms usually aren’t up to scratch.

This is why it’s a good idea to find lawyers that specialise in business law. They tend to be goal-oriented, like you. Their priority is to make sure that your business can carry out the transactions it needs to. So how can a commercial lawyer actually help you?

Finance and taxation

One issue is knowing the legal implications of difference sources of finance. Should you go to the bank? Should you remortgage your home? Should you seek out investment from a venture capitalist? Should you borrow money from friends and family?

But often neglected are the legal consequence of these transactions. Unfortunately, without well-defined terms and conditions, disputes can sometimes arise.

Also, there may be unforeseen legal hurdles involved in various types of borrowing. What legal services can offer, then, is a comprehensive weighting of both the pros and cons of a particular borrowing strategy.

They can also offer advice on how to negotiate the best rates, be that on your remortgage agreement with the bank or with private lenders. And finally, they can explain the tax implications of both.

Selling

In today’s ultra-regulated business environment, all businesses need to be aware of what they can and can’t do. When it comes to selling goods, there are a number of important considerations.

For example, if you’re selling goods, what are the implications of your supplier contracts? A legal firm will be able to advise, in plain English, what the terms of your agreement mean.

You also need to make sure you know what you can and can’t say legally in adverts and promotional materials. For example, you can’t make false claims about your product or service. If you do make a claim, you need to make sure that it’s backed up with legally accepted evidence.

Then there is the risk that your product might harm somebody. In this case, it’s a good idea to have an understanding of your level of legal liability, should somebody get injured by your product.

This is another legal quagmire. One problem that businesses have is the landlord increasing the rent once they’re established. This is a problem and needs to be addressed at the beginning on the negotiation.

Ensure that if there is a term in the contract with the landlord that allows the rent to increase that this is understood. Plus, find out if the landlord intends to increase the price by alternative means. Might there be service charges, for example?

Employing people

Employment law in the UK is fluid. Much of the law in the UK is centred around your ability to dismiss an employee and to keep them safe.

Many legal disputes arise when an employment contract is poorly defined. Make sure that you get a professional to determine whether your employment contracts protect you from legal action.

It pays to document everything

There is always a lot going on in any business at every point in time. You can easily forget to write things down. It’s in your best interest to document every business process and decision.

There is no substitute for properly documenting everything when you are dealing with stakeholders, employees, vendors, customers and other people you work with while building your business.

Your business should always be prepared with the right documentation. It can can save you a good deal of pain, especially when things go wrong. Not everything goes as planned in business. Even big brands don’t always get it right all the time.